The phenomenon of foreign medical education is widespread, almost completely unknown, and unregulated
examining particular global medical environment
Strange things are going on worldwide in the area of medical education. On the one hand, there appears to be a shortage of medical doctors, while at the same time governments, and in many cases also medical doctors themselves, oppose increased access to the study of medicine.
As a result, there has been an increase in international mobility of medical students from high-, mid- and low-income countries.
While once medical education was international, now it is nationally regulated, but at the same time becoming internationalised.
कितने लोग बहर जाते हैं?
No one knows how many international students are studying in medical schools outside their home countries,
but a conservative estimate might put the number to be more than 2,00,000 — many of them in institutions and countries with questionable quality of medical preparation.
To give an indication, Ukraine, before the Russian invasion, had 24,000 medical students from abroad, mainly, but not exclusively, from India.
The India crisis
severe shortage of doctors
India is an interesting example. The country has a severe shortage of doctors.
. Annually, approximately 2.3 million students sit for the national medical school entry examination, but only one in around 22 successful candidates is able to enter the country’s 700-plus medical colleges.
This is the reason to go abroad
The fierce competition for medical seats in India has compelled many students to explore opportunities abroad.
It is estimated that more than 20,000 Indian medical students go abroad to study.
With limited government medical seats and high tuition fees in private institutions, studying medicine abroad has emerged as an “affordable” and practical alternative for Indian aspirants.
कौन-कौन से देश जाते हैं मेडिकल की पढ़ाई करने के लिए ???
Countries such as Russia, pre-war Ukraine, Kazakhstan, the Philippines, China, Mauritius, and Nepal have become attractive destinations.
institutions in foreign countries are controlled by Indians
Interestingly, some of the institutions in foreign countries are controlled by Indians. One such institution is the Manipal College of Medical Sciences in neighbouring Nepal, the country’s first private medical college which was established in 1994.
It is operated by the Manipal Education and Medical Group (MEMG), Bengaluru.
The American University of Antigua (AUA) College of Medicine, a Caribbean medical school, is also a division of Manipal.
But studying medicine abroad comes with its own challenges
particularly for those who wish to practise in India.
Indian students who complete their programmes from foreign institutions must clear the national licensing examination to qualify for medical practice in India.
They are also required to complete a medical internship upon their return.
In foreign
Similarly, Indians wishing to practise medicine in other countries must satisfy licensing and other requirements of those countries — and one can find Indian doctors throughout the world.
Budget 2025 में medical education की उपलब्धियों को गिनाया जाना
government had successfully added nearly 1.1 lakh undergraduate and postgraduate medical education seats over the past decade, an increase of 130%.
She also revealed plans for further expansion in the medical education sector by announcing that an additional 10,000 seats would be introduced in medical colleges and hospitals in 2026.
This initiative is part of a broader five-year goal to add 75,000 new seats, aimed at addressing the growing demand for qualified medical professionals.
Not just a Global South phenomenon
For many years, students from western countries such as France, Germany, the Netherlands, and Norway, have been going to neighbouring countries for their medical studies, due to a lack of access at home. Romania, where medical study is provided in French, Hungary, and Poland are common host countries.
Hungary and Poland also receive medical students from the United States. Thousands of U.S. students study medicine in these two countries, as well as in Ireland, the Caribbean, and the United Kingdom.
Medical programmes in central and eastern Europe, as well as in Central Asia, cater to diaspora students and teach in English.
The Medical University of Warsaw, for instance, has medical study programmes in both Polish and English. Currently, due to a lack of national funding for places at their home universities, about 3,000 Norwegian medical students receive scholarships to study abroad, mainly in central and eastern Europe.
In other words, the phenomenon of foreign medical education is widespread, almost completely unknown, and unregulated.
Where entire medical schools are devoted to international enrolments, they are almost exclusively for-profit institutions.
Medical schools established in non-English speaking environments, such as Poland and Ukraine, offer English-medium medical curricula to attract high-fee-paying international students.
Balancing demand and quality concerns
solutions are expensive
As the recent Budget speech shows, the government is starting to see the problem, but solutions are expensive and meet opposition from inside the medical establishment, which fears a deterioration of their privileges and elite status.
Yet, with an aging population, the need for quality medical doctors will only increase.
The growing number of students looking for medical education abroad illustrates a potential, but there is an overall lack of quality control. More attention is needed on this key challenge.
Source the hindu
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